Carton-type container for electric light bulbs



R. E. PAlG E Aug. 31, 1965 CARTON-TYPE CONTAINER FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT BULBS Filed Jan. 17, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet l R. E. PAIGE.

Aug. 31, 1965 CARTON-TYPE CONTAINER FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT BULBS Filed Jan. 17, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 0 3,203,617 CARTON -TYPE CONTAINER FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT BULBS Richard E. Paige, 411 E. 57th St, New York, N. Filed Jan. '17, 1964, 'Ser. No. 338,414 4 Claims. (Cl. 229-39) This invention relates generally to containers for electric light bulbs, and has particular reference to an inexpensive throw-away type of protective container composed of corrugated paper stock.

The invention is primarily directed to a rectangular carton-type container adapted snugly to accommodate a single bulb and consisting of a four-sided sleeve-like body, a cover or closure at one end hinged to one of the sides, and a container base at the opposite end. Some manufacturers prefer to package bulbs in this way rather than in open-ended sleeves.

It is a general object of the invention to provide a bulb container of the character described having improved structural features which make it less costly to manufacture than conventional containers of comparable kind, more efiicient and reliable in enclosing and firmly engaging a bulb in adequately protected fashion, and attractive and effective from a merchandising standpoint.

A more particular object is to provide a container in which the corrugated paper stock of which it is formed consists of two adhesively joined layers one of which is planar and the other corrugated, the corrugations being on the inside of the container; and in which the corrugations do not interfere with or impede desired swinging movements of the cover to close and open the container. It is, in fact, an objective of the invention to construct the container in such a way that corrugations on the container are specifically made use of to improve the manner in which the bulb is reliably held in place. More particularly, corrugations are provided in a special disposition upon specially-provided tuckin flaps carried by the cover, for frictional engagement of the globular part of the bulb. The corrugations are so arranged that they change their angularity in a predetermined manner as the cover is swung, whereby the bulb is automatically urged into the container when the closing of the cover is initiated, and whereby lifting of the cover is resisted after the container is closed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a container in which the base is of such a character that the narrowed base end of the bulb can be safely and sturdily cradled in any one of the four base angles of the container.

A further and important object of the invention is to provide a container having the structural and functional advantages referred so, formed of a single blank of paper stock, the blank being so shaped and designed that containers can be manufactured in commercial quantities at unusually low cost.

The improved construction includes lateral quadrantshaped tuck-in flaps on the cover, the corrugations extending parallel to the cover hinge whereby their angularity with respect to the container axis changes from perpendicular to parallel as the cover is closed, and oppositely when the container is opened. By this changing angularity the bulb is urged into the container by the corrugations when closing of the cover is initiated, and the bulb itself resists a lifting of the cover when the container is closed. Thus, the bulb is firmly and reliably gripped, and losses due to inadvertent breakage can be materially reduced, notwithstanding the absence of any means for positively retaining the container cover in a closed condition.

By means of these expedients and other novel structural features, it is another general objective of the in- CII 'ice

vention to obviate numerous disadvantages and shortcomings of sleeve-type and carton-type bulb holders currently in use, and to achieve economies and commercially valuable benefits not heretofore afforded.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a face view of a blank from' which a container of the improved type can be made;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a dontaliner formed of the blank of FIGURE 1, the cover being lifted and a bulb being shown in readiness for insertion;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the container during the process of closing the cover;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view, from the bottom, of a fully closed container;

FIGURE 5 is a cross-sectional view along the line 5-5 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary cross-section in the direction of FIGURE 5 during the commencement of cover lifting;

FIGURE 7 is a view like FIGURE 6 at a later stage of opening the container; and

FIGURE 8 is a cross-sectional view along line 88 of FIGURE 7.

The bulb chosen for illustration is of the conventional style in which an enlarged generally globular part has a narrower part secured to a metallic base of cylindrical contour, usually bearing external threads. The invention contemplates an accommodation of the bulb within a carton-like enclosure, as shown in FIGURE 4, at a slight inclination to the longitudinal axis of the container.

The blank of which the container is made is designated 10 in FIGURE 1. It is composed of paper stock consisting of two layers or plies held in adhesive relationship. The layer 11, ultimately exposed on the exterior of the container, is planar while the layer 12, to be on the inside of the container, is corrugated. The blank 19 is shaped and contoured to define (among others) a series of rectangular main panels 13, 14, 15, 16 connected along fold lines 17, 18, 19, 20. The corrugations extend crosswise with respect to the parallel fold lines 1720.

The corrugated layer may terminate at the fold line 17, and the part of the blank located between this line and the side edge 21 of the blank constitutes a relatively narrow attachment flap 22. When the blank is folded on the score lines referred to, it can be formed into a four-sided sleeve-like body with the flap 22 overlapping and adhesively secured to the opposite end of the blank. The dimensions of this sleeve are so chosen, with respect to the bulb to be enclosed, that the length is slightly less than that of the bulb, and the enlarged globular part of the bulb will fit snugly within the confines of the four side walls.

Hinged to one end of panel 15, along hinge line 23, is a cover panel 24, substantially square in contour. Appended to its side edges, along fold lines 25, are quadrant-shaped lateral flaps 26. Each of these has a straight free edge 27 and a convex preferably arcuate free edge 28, the latter extending from the end of edge 27 to the free edge of the cover panel 24.

The cuts which, in the blank, define the edges 27 of the flaps 26, can also define the end edges of sleeve sides 14 and 16, aligned with hinge 23. The corresponding edge of panel 13 is provided with a cut-away contour 29 as shown.

At the opposite ends of the main panels 13-46, flaps 30 are hinged along lines 31, there being one such flap for each main panel. Preferably the flaps 30 are of trapezoidal shape, as shown. They are of such size that when the container is formed they will interengage sequentially (i.e., swastika-fashion) as best shown in FIG- URE 4. Thus they establish a base closure for the container.

The reference numerals employed in FIGURE 1 in relation to the blank are applied to corresponding parts of the container depicted in the other figures.

When the closure flap 24 is brought into the extended relation shown in FIGURE 2, with the lateral flaps 26 folded forwardly into parallel planes, the container is ready to receive a bulb 32. The bulb is inserted with its narrower end down, and in a cradled relationship to any selected one of the four base angles of the container. In this disposition the bulb lies slightly oblique with its enlarged globular part directly adjacent to the hinged cover. The cover is then swung forwardly so that the flaps 26 frictionally engage the bulb between them. As the cover is pressed down, the smooth outer surfaces of the tuck-in flaps 26 slide in unimpeded manner along the inner surfaces of the adjacent sides 14 and 16. When fully enclosed, the color and nature of the bulb, even its presence or absence, can still be observed through the opening afforded by the cutout 29.

It should be noted that the corrugations on the flaps 26 are perpendicular to the axis of the container when the closing of the cover commences (FIGURE 2) and that the angularity changes as the cover 24 is brought down, so that when completely closed (FIGURE 5) the corrugations on the flaps 26 are parallel to the container axis. A reverse change in angularity occurs when the cover is lifted, as shown in FIGURES 6-8. The effects of this are important in achieving the objectives of the invention. During the closing of the cover, the corrugations exert a downward frictional force upon the bulb, urging it into fully accomodated position with its lower end firmly and securely cradled within the staunch confines of a base corner of the container. Then, when the container is closed, any re-lifting of the cover 24 is resisted by the bulb because as soon as the cover moves out of its fully closed position the corrugations on the flaps 26 move further and further out of the parallelto-axis angularity of FIGURES 4 and 5 and more and more into crosswise disposition. (The frictional resistance of the bulb manifests itself by the circumstance that it rises slightly out of the container as indicated in FIGURES 68.) Thus inadvertent lifting of the cover is impeded notwithstanding the fact that there are no means for positively retaining the cover in closed position. Yet the deliberate lifting of the cover to remove the bulb is accompanied by the advantageous partial lifting of the bulb so that it can be grasped more readily.

Coupled with the advantages referred to is the basic circumstance that the container is of extreme simpilcity from a structural standpoint, and economical because of the small amount of corrugated paper stock required. The blank of FIGURE 1, for example, could be cut from a continuous web extending in the direction of the fold lines 17-20, and in forming these blanks on a commercial scale the creation of the necessary cuts and fold lines, even the formation of the two-ply stock itself, could be performed on a continuous basis.

It will be understood that in some respects the details herein described and illustrated can be modified without necessarily departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A container for an electric light bulb having a globular part and a narrower base, comprising a foursided sleeve having a cover at one end hinged to one of said sides, the sleeve being adapted snugly to accommodate the bulb with its globular part directly beneath said cover, said cover being provided with lateral tuckin flaps adapted to slide along the inner surfaces of the adjacent sleeve sides as the cover is swung into and out of container-closing disposition, the inner surfaces of said flaps bearing corrugations extending perpendicular to the cover edges to which they are appended, said corrugations thereby lying parallel to the sleeve axis when the container is closed and swinging toward an orientation at right angles thereto as the cover is lifted to open the container, said flaps being adapted frictionally to engage the globular part of the bulb between them, whereby the changing angularity of said corrugations urges the bulb into the container as the closing of the cover is initiated and resists lifting of the cover after the container is closed.

2. A container for an electric light bulb as defined in claim 1, including means at the sleeve end opposite the cover for cradling the base of the bulb in one of the base angles of the container, said means comprising a sleeve end closure formed of four sequentially interengaging flaps carried by the sleeve sides respectively, whereby the bulb base can be cradled in any selected one of the four base angles.

3. A container for an electric light bulb as defined in claim 1, in which the four sleeve sides, the cover, and the tuck-in flaps are integral parts of a single blank of foldable paper comprising at least two adhesively joined layers one of which is corrugated and the other planar, the corrugations extending crosswise with respect to the fold lines between the sleeve sides.

4. A container for an electric light bulb having a globular part and a narrower base, comprising: a single blank of corrugated paper stock having panels connected by fold lines and shaped to define a four-sided sleeve, a cover at one end hinged to one of said sides, lateral quadrant-shaped tuck-in flaps hinged to the cover, and a container base formed of four sequentially interengaged flaps carried by the sleeve sides respectively; said paper stock consisting of two adhesively joined layers one of which is corrugated and the other planar, the corrugations being on the inside of the container and extending parallel to the cover hinge; said container being adapted snugly to accommodate the bulb with its base cradled in one of the container base angles and its globular part directly beneath said cover; said container being closed and opened by swinging of said cover, and said tuck-in flaps sliding along the inner surfaces of the adjacent sleeve sides as the cover is swung into and out of container-closing disposition; the corrugations on said tuck-in flaps frictionally engaging the globular part of the bulb between them.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 340,904 4/86 Auchterlonie 229--38 659,943 10/19 Warner 229-38 1,747,757 2/30 Deibel. 1,755,690 4/30 Heim 229-38 1,928,792 10/33 Ottinger 229-68 X 2,569,733 10/51 Ringler. 2,698,124 12/54 Hines 229-38 X 2,855,096 10/58 Aull 2067 FRANKLIN T. GARRETT, Primary Examiner. 

1. A CONTAINER FOR AN ELECTRIC LIGHT BULB HAVING A GLOBULAR PART AND A NARROWER BASE, COMPRISING A FOURSIDED SLEEVE HAVING A COVER AT ONE END HINGED TO ONE OF SAID SIDES, THE SLEEVE BEING ADAPTED SNUGLY TO ACCOMMODATE THE BULB WITH ITS GLOBULAR PART DIRECTLY BENEATH SAID COVER, SAID COVER BEING PROVIDED WITH LATERAL TUCKIN FLAPS ADAPTED TO SLIDE ALONG THE INNER SURFACES OF THE ADJACENT SLEEVE SIDES AS THE COVER IS SWUNG INTO AND OUT OF CONTAINER-CLOSING DISPOSITION, THE INNER SURFACES OF SAID FLAPS BEARING CORRUGATIONS EXTENDING PERPENDICULAR TO THE COVER EDGES TO WHICH THEY ARE APPENDED, SAID CORRUGATIONS THEREBY LYING PARALLEL TO THE SLEEVE AXIS WHEN THE CONTAINER IS CLOSED AND SWINGING TOWARD AN ORIENTATION AT RIGHT ANGLES THERETO AS THE COVER IS LIFTED TO OPEN THE CONTAINER, SAID FLAPS BEING ADAPTED FRICTIONALLY TO ENGAGE THE GLOBULAR PART OF THE BULB BETWEEN THEM, WHEREBY THE CHANGING ANGULARITY OF SAID CORRUGATIONS URGES THE BULB INTO THE CONTAINER AS THE CLOSING OF THE COVER IS INITIATED TO RESISTS LIFING OF THE COVER AFTER THE CONTAINER IS CLOSED. 